We currently pay a percentage of the total cost of attendance for my daughter's college. I asked the institution what exactly the family/student contributions are going towards so we can claim the AOTC (for tuition, fees, books, etc.--not room and board). They essentially told me that whatever we pay goes towards the cost of attendance, generally speaking, not any particular line item like tuition or room charges. Given this, is it possible to use the AOTC? Can we assume at least some of our payments are going towards room and board? I've copied the exchange below for reference. Any help is appreciated! Thank you.
Question to College
I’m trying to determine what my family contribution--student or parent contributions in the form of federal loans and monthly payments--to my daughter’s education is going towards exactly. Are we paying for some portion of tuition, room & board, and/or other fees? Just room and board possibly?
Answer
Please note that our system does not allocate payments to specific charges. Tuition and fees are billed as a total amount, and financial aid and payments are applied to the overall balance rather than to individual line items.
